


Terminal

by Cute_Rosey_Keyblades, TheRedHero11037



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Multi, OH GOD WHY, Sad, do u see thE PAIN, do u see these tags, i UUGH, i dont even know why, sick
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-01
Updated: 2014-11-01
Packaged: 2018-02-23 11:09:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2545352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cute_Rosey_Keyblades/pseuds/Cute_Rosey_Keyblades, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRedHero11037/pseuds/TheRedHero11037
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Aqua struggled months trying to get to the heart of the war, and once she got there she found him. After three months of planning, hiding and aching, she finally got in, hidden under darkness' streets. The streets of Radiant Garden reeked of Darkness. But her main objective was to find him. And she has.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Terminal

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Within the Boundaries of War](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2375528) by [Cute_Rosey_Keyblades](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cute_Rosey_Keyblades/pseuds/Cute_Rosey_Keyblades). 



> sometimes i really wonder what this is. its just a drabble that we put together based off of my war au, Within the Boundaries of War. we wanted some cutes but also some sads and wow did we do it, also its pretty long... only one chapter!

Aqua knew coming this deep into the bad parts of Radiant Garden was a horrible idea, but if it lead her closer to finding Terra so be it. She ran down the streets making sure no one thought she was out of place. Her azure hair was covered by a black hood. She hit the center of town again, searching through the crowds of people doing their daily routine. Aqua tried to blend into the crowd when a rough gauntlet grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. She turned back to find a mysterious armored figure pulling her back through the crowd. "What?! Where are you taking me!" she shouted, pulling the crowd's attention to her. The mysterious person casted mute on her and pulled her away into an empty alley.

The man tossed her at the feet of a familiar armored figure.  
"Change of plans. Your new mission is to take care of this imposter."  
"Right," Terra replied, summoning his keyblade and taking a step toward her.

The deep black hood fell and her azure hair was shown, clearly the sore thumb of the group. She looked up at him. Her eyes widened. "Terra?!" She noticed Earthshaker in his hand, ready to condemn it's next victim. "What are you doing Terra? It's me," Her hands covered her heart. "Aqua, I came looking for you!"

Terra immediately recalled his Keyblade and knelt next to her. "Aqua? What were you thinking?" He motioned for the other man to leave them. "You know how dangerous this place is, especially when you're... y'know."

Aqua cringed. "What are you doing? Why did you leave us? Why join them!" Her head spurred so many questions. She looked at what he was adorned in. He was wearing his glider armor, but it was cloaked by a huge cape, resting off of his shoulders. "It's been almost three months since I've seen you. Ven is at home, but we keep getting threats." she mumbled.

"I told you, I'm training under Xehanort. I'm sorry," Terra trailed off. "I should have visited. I could protect you there... Is the Master alright?"

Aqua crossed her arms. "Master is fine, he's just.. trying to deal with everything." She shook her head. "It's too much for him. But, I've seen so many gruesome things, my people.." Her eyes swelled with the horrid memories of seeing the things the Darkness does to those in Light.

Terra hugged her. "God, I'm so sorry... I want to be there but... The training. I just want to get better so I can protect people." Terra closed his eyes. "I wish I hadn't taken on this stupid training if it means helping you and Ven."

Aqua was confused and pushed him away. "But you know what you're doing don't you! You're murdering innocent people just so Darkness can be the supreme rule! You might not believe what they are doing but they are controlling you! You have to stop!" She shouted. Her heart knew she had to do this, but it caused her more pain than she imagined.

"Aqua, please, calm down!" He reached for her hands, confused and frankly, scared. "I don't know what you're talking about. I've only been training with Xehanort this whole time." His gold flecked eyes meet her pure blue ones. "Aqua, please."

Aqua sank down. "You don't know about the war around you? He hasn't been talking about it? You don't know about the danger I'm in? That Ven and the Master are in?" Her eyes tried to find his real blue ones, instead of the golden liars. "I don't understand. How, is it that you are living so oblivious to what is happening, when I am risking everything every second of the day." She whispered, looking down.

"The... What? Aqua, oh my god." He grabbed her and pulled her close. "I... I don't know. I'm sorry. I think I'm going crazy..."

"It's like you aren't even real anymore." She mumbled into his armor. "I don't understand." She shook her head.

"... I'm sorry." Terra didn't really know what to say besides that. He didn't know what she was talking about, really.

Aqua grit her teeth. "What if it wasn't me when your friend brought me here, what would you have done then?" She asked taking handfuls of her coat. "You had your keyblade ready, like you wanted to slaughter." Her voice cracked.

"I... I don't know. I'm sorry. I was in a haze until I saw it was you, like whenever I come out of one of those fainting spells I've been having recently. They're new." Terra grasped Aqua's hand. "I'm scared."

Aqua furrowed her brow. "He's possessing you! Terra you have to get out of here." She began. If he was to leave, how would he? There seems to always be someone at his side. Her mind raced. "I can't believe this."

Terra was dazed. "....Possessed? He's..." He murmured more under his breath. "I... I don't understand."

"Fainting spells? Being in a haze? It's not very hard to notice Terra!" She held her face in her hands. "What is he teaching you?" Her eyes demanded an answer.

"To tap into my true potential," Terra answered vaguely.

"To serve the Darkness." She continued for him. "Has he done anything weird?"

"Just... He talks to himself a lot and has these quiet talks with the others... I mean, he does that with me too, but mostly them."

"Who?" Her knuckles began to turn white from her tight grip on her coat.

"One older guy with long white hair, and the one other apprentice with the arrowguns." Terra omitted the fact that he'd fucked the guy's face up. "A few others, mostly like our age. Some a little younger."

"I don't know any of those people." She shrugged. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed a solider watching them. She glanced up towards the rooftops and noticed another, and some even in homes, watching them. Her back tensed. "Terra, they're watching me." She whispered. Her heartbeat began to race and she felt it in her fingertips.

Terra grabbed her hands. "I... I have a plan, but I'm not sure you'll like it."

Aqua struggled to nod. Her throat was dry and on fire. They had most likely heard everything she had said, she was afraid if she said anything else she would die. "Anything that won't kill me." Her hands started to shake.

"Play along," he whispered. He took her hands and held them behind her back. A few soldiers walked up to them, followed by a shorter man in a black cloak. His posture demanded an explanation. Terra nodded. "She's a prisoner, an important one. The Master wants her for questioning." The man shrugged and held out an arm. The soldiers cleared the way.

Aqua didn't really need to play along, she was already nervous. His grip on her wrists was tight. She winced from the metal plating on his gauntlets cutting her precious wrists. They began to be followed by the soldiers who watched them. "Terra!" she murmured. A soldier jabbed a blunt weapon into her back. "Silence, light whore." The soldier spat.

Terra smacked the soldier's weapon away firmly. "You aren't to touch her! You haven't even got the status to speak to her. She could outrank you in a matter of days!" The soldier recoiled and slunk away, and the rest began to keep their distance.

Aqua rolled her eyes. He pulled her along near a huge castle, busted and emitting black gases into the sky. She looked back and the guards seemed to stop following them. "Terra, they're gone.. But, where are we?" Her eyes loomed up to the castle's towers, lifelessly hanging.

"A... well. It's hard to explain. Not Xehanort, don't worry. The apprentices mean well, they really do." Terra put an arm comfortingly on her shoulder.

She shook her head. "No, I mean where are we," Her hand pointed to the massive castle. "What is that?"

"The castle of the late Ansem the Wise. It's--" Terra cut off, distracted by a little boy running towards them. He couldn't have been older than five or six, and he looked... odd. Draped in a clean white lab coat only a bit to big for him, thin, pale, almost colorless. Even his hair seemed grey.  
Terra scooped him up in his arms and smiled. "Where you going?"

Aqua hid behind Terra. "Who is that." She pointed to the child Terra was holding. The young child was staring right at her.

"Aqua, this is Ienzo," Terra said. "He lives here with his-- Are you hiding behind me? From him?" Ienzo tilted his head, confused.

She stayed behind him. "I don't know! This is the worst place for me to be! I didn't know if he was going to capture me." She whispered. Ienzo kept his gaze locked on Aqua.

"Aqua, he's five," Terra sighed.  
"Five and a half," Ienzo protested disinterestedly.  
"Five and a half. He isn't going to hurt you."  
"Is she an experiment?" Ienzo asked. "Or a princess? Or a scientist??"  
"You'll find out soon enough, buddy," Terra replied, ruffling the boy's hair fondly.

Aqua walked out from behind Terra. "I'm sorry I was afraid of you. By the way, my name is Aqua. I'm a good friend of Terra." She smiled sweetly. Her hand grabbed a fistful of Terra's cape, looking incredibly timid.

Ienzo nodded, then seemed to get lost in thought again. Terra gave a calm, confident smile. "C'mon. Let's get to Even."

Aqua held his cape and stayed close to him. "Who's that?!" She whispered, confused and lost. Terra led her into the massive castle. "I don't know if this is a good idea.." She mumbled.

"Even takes care of me," Ienzo said, big, blue eyes fixed on Aqua. "But Aeleus takes care of me more. He loves me and he keeps the whole castle safe and I'm gonna marry him when I grow up." The five-and-a-half year old nodded decisively.

Aqua nodded. "A-Are they nice? To people like me?" She quickly covered her mouth after the comment. "I mean, uh.." Her thought stopped and she just shrugged.

"Aeleus is very scary sometimes but he is very nice," Ienzo explained.  
"You should be fine. There's a policy in place to protect people." Terra smiled. "Speaking of, I should probably uncuff you before someone yells at me." He set Ienzo down and undid the metal cuffs around Aqua's wrists. Ienzo looked up at her expectantly.

Aqua rubbed her wrists. "Thank you. Where are we going?" She walked over to the railing next to them. "This place is bigger than home!" Her voice echoed in the huge corridor.

"Like I said, we're going to see Even. He runs this place almost single handedly... His lab is way further ahead, unfortunately."  
"I'm not to go in there," Ienzo said. He stared at Aqua and tugged the black coat she was still wearing.

Aqua smiled at Ienzo. She picked him up and brushed his poorly cut hair away from his eyes. "If I go with Terra, will you go too?" She asked sweetly. Her blue eyes looked to Terra, she walked over to him still holding Ienzo.

Ienzo nodded. "Oh!" He appeared to have remembered something. "What time is it? Because Even has to check on the patients every hour."  
Terra tried not to look as uncomfortable as he felt.

Aqua looked back at Terra. "Well, I'm not sure.. Do you know the time, Terra?" She wondered what he meant by that. "What does he mean?"

"This is kind of like a hospital," he explained, "though only to some. Even is very particular."  
"There are two patients. There were free, but one is gone now." Ienzo adorably mispronounced the 3.  
Terra looked around for the closest clock. "Hmm, uh." He dissolved his armor. "Can't find one, but the lab's here."

Terra wasn't wearing what Aqua had remember him wearing. He was wearing nicer clothing, instead of his garb from home. She observed his new outfit before coming back to reality. "Hospital?" She cringed at the word. "Now I know what you mean, Ienzo." She smiled and tickled his belly, making him laugh. Her gaze met Terra's. "Well, I guess you can lead on, knight." She teased, smiling.

Terra knocked on the lab door a couple times.  
The door was opened by a very large man. He had to be at least six foot four, and incredibly muscular, with short ginger hair. What he didn't have, however, was a lab coat.  
"Aeleus!" Ienzo cried, reaching out for him.

Aqua put Ienzo down, watching him run to the huge dude. She took her old place behind Terra. She peered over Terra's shoulder. Her blue tassels still stood out greatly in the group.

Terra reached for Aqua's hand. "Even isn't here?"  
The man easily scooped Ienzo up with one arm, then shook his head. Ienzo wrapped his little arms around Aeleus's thick neck. "Are they doing okay?"  
"Last I heard, they were stable, but still unconscious."  
Terra stepped forward. "Could you show us where Even is?"  
Aeleus nodded and stepped out of the room to lead them. Notably, he had a large handaxe strapped to his hip in an ornate scabbard.

Aqua took his hand, squeezing it. She stayed quiet while he took them into the room. The room had sofas and tables in it. They aligned the walls with paintings and photographs above them. Aqua observed the room, not noticing where she was going and tripped, falling onto Terra's back.

Terra steadied her by her shoulders. "Careful... Oh and, uh." He leaned in close to Aqua and whispered. "I'm sorry about Even. He's kind of got a superiority complex. My advice is to kiss ass like you've never kissed ass before."  
Aside from the photos and paintings (they both stared rather intently at a beautiful painting of Ansem the Wise for a while) scattered about the area, there was a large white curtain that Aeleus and Ienzo had disappeared behind. A short, hushed discussion later, they reappeared.  
"I'm taking Ienzo to bed as soon as Dilan arrives," Aeleus reported.  
"Bed? I don't wanna go to bed! Bedtime's for babies," protested Ienzo.  
"Last time you stayed up too late, your headaches came back. Come on."  
Terra nodded in understanding while Ienzo whined (surprisingly quietly for a child of his age) at Aeleus to let him stay up later.

Aqua smiled, and bent down to Ienzo's height. "It's alright Ienzo, you can go to bed. I don't want you to get a bad headache." She watched him pout and beg to Aeleus. Her back straightened back up to meet Terra's side. She folded her hands over her heart and looked up at Aeleus. "By the way, my name is Aqua." She extended her hand for a hand shake. "I'm a dear friend of Terra's." She finished.

"I am Aeleus. Head of the Castle Guard and Ienzo's caretaker, for the most part." He nodded.  
"I'm Ienzo," the boy pridefully re-introduced himself. "I live here with Even and Aeleus and Dilan because I'm an orca!"  
"Orphan, sweetheart," Aeleus corrected gently.  
"A that."

Aqua looked at Terra. "Are we gonna go look for Even?" She asked tugging lightly on his arm.

"He's back there," Terra assured her.  
"He is working, but nothing he can't talk while doing. I'll take you back for now, but Dilan should arrive soon." Aeleus pulled back the curtain to reveal two beds covered in beeping machines. A thin man was fiddling with one of the machines, muttering to himself quietly. He was very thin, and just as pale as Ienzo. His hair was long and white-blond, tied in the back with a purple bow. His labcoat was perfectly white and clean like Ienzo's. Aeleus quietly alerted him to Terra and Aqua's presence. He looked over at them.  
"Hope you don't find me rude for continuing while we speak."

Aqua looked at Terra. He just shrugged. "Uh, Even? My name is Aqua, I'm Terra's friend..um." She was at a loss for words. Her gaze glued up to her companion, asking for help.

"She needs a place to stay until she can return home. She can help you, as a guard or a nurse," Terra continued.  
Even didn't look up from his patient, a boy with spiked red hair, dressed in a simple gown, unconscious. The other was similar, though he had blue hair, and bandages across his face. "...Remain with her, one of you," he said vaguely as one of the machines started beeping. "I'm busy. You may continue talking if you wish, though."

Aqua squeezed Terra's arm. "I'll be helpful to you, I promise." She reassured him. Being away from home was weird. Being stuck in a capital filled with people who wanted to murder her was scary. Thoughts passed to and fro in her head, starting to give her a headache. She reached up and touched her forehead.

"You okay?" Terra asked, putting a stabilizing hand on her shoulder.  
"God, I hope so. I have to deal with these troublemakers," Even bitched.

Aqua nodded. "Yeah. I'm fine." She squeezed her eyes shut. "Just a headache." She groaned. Her head pounded. "I'm probably just tired." She kept her eyes shut.

"I can set you two up in one of the spare bedrooms," said a voice from behind them. Even jumped.  
"Dilan! You must be well aware I have two delicate patients here. Do not roll your eyes at me!" Even huffed. "Take them to a room. It'll give me some quiet to replace bandages." Dilan shrugged and motioned for the two to follow him. He was tall, not as tall as Aeleus, though, nor as muscular. He had long, thick dreadlocks in jet black, leading into massive sideburns. He held a spear in his hand.

Aqua followed Dilan as he took them to their room. He stopped outside a double-door, opening the door for them as they were about to enter. "Thank you Dilan," She turned to him before closing the door. "I'm Aqua, by the way." She smiled and he closed the door. She turned back around to be greeted by a huge room. And they called this a guest room!

"Do you mind sharing the bed or do you want me to take the couch?" Terra asked, smiling. "I'm just as tired as you are. If not, more." As if to prove his point, he yawned loudly. "Eheh."

Aqua flopped on the bed. "It doesn't matter to me." She grinned. She stood up, taking in the huge room. Her gaze fell to her black coat. "Guess I can take this off now," She unzipped the heavy dark coat.

Terra undressed quickly as well, stripping down to his undies and getting into the massive bed. "After we get some rest, we can grab something to eat."

Aqua smiled throwing the coat on a table. She untied her sash, and her corset, and sat on the opposite side of the bed. Her back was to Terra."Thanks for protecting me today.. I really thought I was a goner." She faced him. Her expression was as sincere as it was getting. She sprawled her entire body under the blankets and wrapped up in them.

Terra gave her a quick hug. "Anything for you, Aqua." He fluffed the pillows around him and settled in. "If there's anything you wanna ask before you forget, better do it now." He yawned again.

Aqua's head sank down in the pillow. Her head shook. "I don't think there's anything.." She mumbled. Her gaze tracked to her companion next to herself, asleep. She stared up at the ceiling above counting all of the silver tiles. Her head still pounded, keeping her awake. She tried falling asleep, but her raging headache kept her awake.

Terra gently put his hand to her temple and rubbed softly. "You okay? You want some medicine or something?" he whispered

She shook her head lightly. "No, I think I'll be alright." she winced. Her hand extended up to rub her head, but she met Terra's hand instead.

Terra smiled. "This is what I do for Ven when his head hurts."

Aqua smiled weakly. "It's helping a little." She closed her eyes. "Thanks." She turned on her side to face him.

Terra gazed at her perfect eyes, her shiny soft hair... She was so beautiful. Oh gosh. His heart twisted. His stomach tickled. What was this? Love? Lust? Terra didn't really know what to do, so he just kept smiling at her and rubbing her temple.

Aqua snuggled next to his hand, stealing his warmth. She had actually started to feel tired now that her headache was a little relieved. Her hand reached up and she squeezed her pillow. "I think I'm gonna sleep," She trailed off. Her heart pounded. Her heart knew she was safe here.

"Sleep well." He closed his eyes. "...I love you." He didn't really know why he said that, but he did, and it felt right. He smiled once more and drifted off to sleep.

They both slept for hours, until Terra had woken up. Aqua's head was in his side, and her legs were intertwined with his own. Terra didn't bother moving, but he did notice that it was raining outside.

There was a commotion from the hallway, loud things rolling around and footsteps as well as slight sniffling and a boy's voice lecturing. Terra put his arm around Aqua and tried to listen to the conversation from the hallway.  
"...And really, you don't have to be scared, Lea. I'm here to protect you, and from the looks of it the guards are pretty devoted too. ...Hey! Didn't I just tell you to stop crying?" They seemed to stop directly in front of Terra and Aqua's door. "...Look, I know I'm harsh, but it's only because I want you to be okay. I'm sure you're scared. I promise, we'll be fine."

Aqua was raised from sleep when she heard the commotion. She pulled her head up and looked at the door. "Five more minutes, please." She groaned Her head fell back next to Terra's side. She pulled her hands up and folded them in front of her. "I don't want to get up, Ven." She mumbled.

Terra smiled at her and hugged her, feeling a pleasant flutter in his chest and an embarrassing rush downward. "It's not Ven, Aqua," he whispered.

Aqua stuffed her head down. "Then who is it?" Her voice muffled by her pillow. She then sat up, stretching. "Never mind," she winked.

Terra blushed as a few lewd thoughts flashed through him. "How's your headache doing?" He asked, trying to distract himself from his imminent boner.

"Nonexistent. I probably just needed some sleep." She got up from the bed and stretched some more. After that, she walked to the window, taking in the gloomy, rainy evening. "I'm gonna bathe." She walked to the bathroom, taking her clothes with her.

Terra nodded ,and again an embarrassing thrill rushed through him. Trying to suppress the thoughts didn't help. What else could he focus on?? Oh light. His face was burning with shame.

Aqua threw her garb on the ground and drew water for her bath. Along the wall held several types of soaps and hair products. She observed the scents of the soaps and took a random one. Her back rested against the bathtub until she shut the running water off. She sank down in the warm bubbly water, scrubbing the dirt off of herself. When she had spent a good amount of time in the bath, she noticed she had forgotten to take a towel. Her face streaked red. "Terra?" She called, quickly covering her body up.

"Yeah?" He was still flushed red. "D-do you need somethin'?"

She scrunched up in the now lukewarm, water. "I, uh forgot to grab a towel, could you get me one?" Her voice cracked.

"Sure!" Terra called, finding one quickly and grabbing it for Aqua. He knocked on the bathroom door. "I got it, I'm coming in." He tried desperately not to look at Aqua (at least not directly) and set the towel down next to the sink.

Aqua scrunched up. "Thanks," She said with a red face. The thought of closing the bath curtain didn't even cross her mind. "I'll be out in a minute.."

Terra dashed out and slid back into bed, quickly pulling a pillow over his crotch to hide his boner and hiding his face in his hands. God damn it, why now?

Aqua jumped out of the tub and quickly wrapped the towel around herself. Oh god, he saw me naked oh jeez. She dried off, and put her clothing back on. After redressing, she dried her hair. Her hand turned the doorknob to their bedroom and she walked out, still red after the embarrassing encounter.

Just seeing her sent a fresh wave of embarrassment over Terra. "Sorry," he stammered, "About. I didn't mean to. Y'know. Sorry."

Aqua faced him. "What are you apologizing for?" she laughed. "It was my dumb fault." Her voice trailed off, leaving her tense. "Do you wanna get something to eat?" She asked bouncing up and down in her shoes.

"Y-yeah. We should, shouldn't we?" Terra nodded and stepped out of bed, completely forgetting about his, er, problem as he went to get his clothes.

Aqua smiled as she took a seat. She observed his method of getting dressed. As he finished, she noticed he wore an untied tie. "Let me get that for you," She stood up walking over to him.

"Thanks." Terra glanced out the window. "Wow. Super gloomy out there." He looked back and watched Aqua easily tie his tie. Wow.

"Yeah.. It'd also be good if we don't go far.." She explained. As she finished her hands smoothed his jacket. "There!" She smiled

"I'm sure we can find something in the castle here," Terra assured her. He put his arm around Aqua's shoulders.

She looked up at him, smiling. "You ready to go?"

"Of course." He gave her a little half-hug and they began to wander in search of one of the guards.

Aqua peered around and pointed to someone with long black hair around the corner. "What about him? He looks like a guard." She whispered. The man turned the corner and glared at the azure haired female and her companion.

"Uh, hey. Do you know where we can get food around here?"  
"Aeleus should be making something about now. Check the kitchen. You know where that is?" Terra nodded. "Good." The guard began to walk off. "Also," he added, drawing Terra and Aqua's attention back to him. "You might want to take care of that boner, man." He laughed and disappeared around the corner. Terra blushed to the tips of his ears.

Aqua blanched. She didn't say a word, she just followed Terra to the Kitchens. Once they reached them, she finally made some noise. "You alright?" She smiled.

"I, uh, I'm fine, just.... Really. Embarrassed." God damn it, don't think about her offering to help you with it!   
The smell of food seemed to get his mind off of it. The air in the kitchens smelled sweet as Aeleus stood cooking something for Ienzo, who was diligently reading something at the table.

Aqua giggled, and noticed Ienzo at the table. She smiled and walked ahead of Terra. "Hey Ienzo!" She called, waving at him.

"Aqua!" the boy cried, getting out of his chair to hug her. Terra smiled and ruffled Ienzo's hair.  
"Did you sleep well?"  
Ienzo nodded. "Even's patients woke up," he told them.

Aqua looked at Terra. "Yeah, I think we might have heard them earlier before I woke up." She smiled and looked back down at Ienzo. "What are you reading? It looks interesting." Her gaze fell to the book on the table.

Ienzo held up his book, some kind of research file. Terra was surprised he could read it at all. "That's pretty cool," Terra told him.  
"Even wrote it before I came," Ienzo explained.

Aqua took a seat. She turned to face Ienzo, and she pulled a chair out for him. "Ienzo, what kind of things do you like to do while you're cooped up in this castle?" Her tone was sweet and welcoming.

"I read a lot and play with Aeleus and sometimes Even lets me help." Ienzo nodded confidently. Aeleus silently moved his book aside and set a plate of french toast in its place.

Aqua nodded. "That sounds pretty fun, do you wanna know what I do? It's pretty interesting!" She smiled, totally forgetting she could still be a target. Her hands folded and rested on the table top.

Terra shot her a look, but didn't stop her. This was a safe place, right? Ienzo tilted his head and began eating.

"I'm a Keyblade Master." She beamed. The atmosphere changed, and the weight of the world slumped on her shoulders. Aeleus, Terra and little confused Ienzo looked at her. Her gaze fell upon Terra.

Terra put his arms around her protectively.  
Aeleus thought though exactly what he was going to say. "... ... ...I suggest you get out of the city as soon as you can, and stay in the castle until then."  
"What's a 'key blade'?" Ienzo asked through a mouthful of food.

Aqua went white at Aeleus' instruction. She felt another headache coming on. "A-A Keyblade is.." She began, stammering over her words. Her eyes glanced down. "I feel sick." She held her head and ran out of the kitchen, closing the door behind her and slumped down on the floor.

Terra ran after her, worried that something had happened to her. "Aqua! Are you okay? Can I get you anything? Water?"

Aqua sat on the ground, holding her head and running her thin fingers through her cobalt hair. "I can't stay here, I just ruined everything." She looked up at him, her eyes swelled with tears. "They know," she whispered through sobs. She covered her face.

Terra pulled her into a tight hug. "Aqua, it's okay. It'll be okay. I swear." He brushed her hair out of her face. "You didn't ruin everything. It's okay. Trust me. Please."

She held his shoulders with a tight grip. "Terra, they are going to find me." Her face was burning red. "I'm not safe." She cried.

"Aqua, you're safe with me, I promise. The castle guards won't let anyone come close enough to try, and if they don't make it, I'll help you. Don't cry, please." Terra hugged her close.

"I'm so scared." She wailed. Her hands took handfuls of his jacket. She held her head and squeezed her eyes shut. Her head pounded, sending her heart racing as well.

Terra didn't want to see her like this. It hurt his heart, tore it in two almost. "Don't be. Please." He rubbed her back gently. "I'm sorry."

She buried her head. "Don't apologize. It's my fault." She sobbed. Her hands started shaking. "What if I die? What will happen?" She cried.

"Aqua, calm down! You aren't going to die. We're gonna g-go back home and I'm gonna fix things and--" he broke off in a sob. Damn it. They must look like a mess, crying all over each other in the corridor.

Aqua couldn't stop crying. "I'm so scared. Terra I don't know what to do. I don't know what you can do. I'm just a helpless child of light. In the center of a city that wants my head on a silver platter." She cried dejectedly. Her eyes met Terra's, and she fell farther into pain.

Terra wiped her tears away. "We... We have to leave today. To go home. You can still summon your glider, right? We c-can just ride away."

Aqua frowned. "I'm not permitted to use it." She knelt on the floor. "What are we going to do?" She held his hands, squeezing them for comfort.

"I'll... I'll take you on mine! The master can yell at me all he wants, but you're going to be safe, and we'll all be together again." Terra held tight to her hands and gazed earnestly at her.

Aqua nodded. "I won't let anything happen to you." She dove in and buried her face in his neck, and wrapped her arms around him. "I'm sorry I'm worrying you." She whispered.

His heart flipped when her breath hit his neck. "You don't need to apologize to me, Aqua," he murmured. He held her tightly, one arm behind her shoulders, the other around her waist. He hoped she didn't mind.

Aqua's head screeched. She buried her head away from light and grabbed a handful of his chocolate hair. She winced in pain.

"Huh? Aqua? Can I get you anything?" Terra rubbed the back of her neck, gently resting his head against hers.

Her eyes stayed shut. "I'm getting another headache. I have no idea why I keep getting these.." She squeaked. "Can we go to our room? I need to lay down." She moaned.

"Yes, of course. Are you feeling well enough to walk? I'll carry you if you aren't." Terra smoothed her hair.

She shook her head. "I don't know." Aqua started to stand up, but then stumbled back against the wall. Her head hit the wall, knocking her out cold.

Terra caught her before she hit the ground and quickly picked her up so he could get to their room. He hurried through the halls (almost knocking down Dilan with a hasty apology) and to their room. He set her gently on the bed and sat next to her, only leaving to get her a damp washcloth for her forehead and glass of water for when she came to.

Minutes turned into hours, and it was passed one am before she had actually woken up. Aqua woke up with Terra beside herself. "What..Happened?" She tried sitting up.

"Take it easy," Terra said, laying her back down gently. "You hit your head and passed out. I've just been waiting for you to wake up. How are you feeling?"

"I feel disgusting. I think I might be coming down with something." She said holding her head. "How long was I out?"

"Since this morning," Terra said. "I was really worried. Oh! Do you want some water?" He grabbed the glass from the bedside table.

She gladly took the glass, but drank almost none of it. "I don't understand." Her eyes trailed over to the window. Still gloomy and dark as ever.

"Neither do I... How are you feeling?" Terra held one of her hands. Worry was evident in his eyes. The gold in them had diminished immensely.

Aqua locked eyes with him. "I feel really sick. I'm sorry." her voice trailed off. Her nose started bleeding. "What!?" She pinched her nose. Blood ran down from her nose and dripped on her shirt.

"I-I'll get something to clean you up with!" Terra ran for the bathroom and grabbed a box of tissues for her. "Maybe we should have Even examine you," Terra suggested, handing them to her.

She took a few. "That would probably be wise.." Aqua nodded, trying to clean herself up. "When should we go?" Her voice stayed low.

"Whenever you feel like you can move. I'll carry you there if we need that." Terra tried to smile.

She nodded, and started to get up. She stopped on the edge of the bed, holding her head. "Any move I make, I feel light headed." She closed her eyes.

"I'll definitely carry you, then." Terra delicately picked Aqua up bridal style. "You okay?"

Aqua smiled, pulling her arm around his neck. "Thank you." She blushed lightly.

"Anything for you," Terra replied as they carefully made their way back to the room where Even had been watching over the other patients.

Aqua held her still bleeding nose. "Even. I need you to see what's wrong with me." She said sternly. Aqua didn't like Even, he gave her the worst impression when they first met.

Even gritted his teeth, ready to launch into a lecture while he checked her over. Terra held tight to Aqua's hand.

Aqua frowned. "He doesn't even need to put me down?" She asked, furrowing her brow.

"He doesn't need to, strictly speaking, but I'd be able to more easily examine you if he'd set you on one of the beds."  
"Oh! S-sorry. I'm just..."  
"Scared. Naturally." Even led them over to one of the beds, where Terra gently set Aqua down. Even set to work immediately.

Aqua held her nose and looked at the ceiling. It was really uncomfortable having him prod and poke. Even checked her eyesight, throat, ears, and everything seemed fine. "Let me do an internal scan.." He groaned. Aqua couldn't tell if he hated his job, or loved it he just hated her.

Even continued doing whatever the hell he was doing, asking questions every so often and generally just saying "hmm" a lot. Tera held her hand still, glancing at the other patients, who were now awake and busy whispering to each other.

Aqua laid still as Even casted some strange screen over herself. She tried to be normal and when ever she tried to move Even would scold her. "What's wrong with me? Can't you at least tell me that?" She became impatient. Even glared down at her. "You have a terminal illness." He said bluntly. "You're also a sore thumb in a capital under Darkness' Rule."

"H-how can you just say that?" cried Terra. "She could die and you're saying it like it's nothing!"  
"Be quiet," Even snapped in response. "People are dropping like flies nowadays. It's hardly unthinkable that she's one of them." He turned back to Aqua. "Despite that, I will take care of you however I can."

Aqua sat up quickly, feeling lightheaded afterwards. "I'm going to die?" She looked at Even. "H-how? I don't.." She trailed off. Knowing she was going to die made her heart sink. Master and Ven don't even know! She held her head in her hands. "What am I going to do?"

Terra hugged Aqua, terrified.   
"If you're lucky, which, apparently, you are to have made it here, you'll accept my treatment and recover." Even said flatly. "I may not be nice, but I am incredibly good at what I do."

Aqua sank down. "I have to," She unlocked from Terra. "There's no other way is there?" Her blue eyes swelled from shock. "But what about Ven?" She looked at Terra. "What about Ven? I have to tell him," Her expression, frightened and shocked.

"I... I..." Terra stuttered, unsure what to tell her. Even rolled his eyes and skulked off to retrieve something. Terra had no idea what to say. What could he say? She could die and the Master and Ven... Tears filled his eyes, but he'd decided. He couldn't let her die.

She squeezed his hand. "How are we going to tell them? I'm now in no shape to travel, and I would kill them if they tried to come here." Her head shook. "I don't know what to do! Terra, I'm scared." She fell into his chest and cried. Her senses took in his smell of clay and rose. She rested her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat for comfort.

Terra put his arms around her. "I'll go, Aqua. I'll tell them what happened." He stroked her hair to comfort her. "Whenever you feel I'm being too clingy, I'll go." Terra tried to inject some humor into the situation, but his wavering voice showed his fear.

Aqua shook her head. "I don't want you to leave me here." She whispered. Sure she was safe in the castle, but what if they had an unexpected guest show up? What then? Would she be captured? Would they execute her? These questions plagued her brain.

"I'll protect you here, then," Terra assured her. "I... I won't leave your side as long as you need me."

She nodded. "Thank you. Thank you," Her voice trailed off to a whisper. If it meant keeping her safe in the city, then Ven and Eraqus won't need to know. "We won't tell them." She pulled herself up.

"If we could, we would."  
"Sorry to end this heart wrenching moment, but I need you to drink this," Even interjected, handing a cup half-filled with thin green liquid to Aqua.

Aqua took the cup, observing the gross liquid. "What is it?" She asked. Even crossed his arms. "It's medicine to help you get used to the darkness surrounding you. Unless you want to keep feeling lightheaded or have bloody noses every moment," He scoffed. Aqua took in the disgusting liquid, coughing afterwards.

"Apologies for the taste. I'm aware it's terrible, but there's nothing I can do about that." Even took a few more bottles from one of the cabinets on the wall and began pouring a few into more cups on the nearby countertops.  
"That's a lot of medicine," Terra noted.  
"I have three patients. It's not as much as you think."

Aqua looked over at the medicine. "How much of it is for me?" Her headache and nausea diminished slowly after she took the green medicine. She held her stomach and it made a low growl. "I should eat something." She groaned.

"Not much," Even said, swirling some vaguely pink liquid in front of his face. "Much more for those two." Even shrugged vaguely at the boys on the other side of the room.  
Terra nodded. "Hopefully we can have something brought to you."

Aqua held her growling stomach, and looked at Even. "How soon could I eat?" She asked, clearly really hungry. Even took medicine to the other patients. "Why don't we have Terra go get some for you? He looks terribly bored." Even grinned, continuing to his work.

"I-I'm not bored!" Terra protested.  
"Hush," Even replied from his place across the room. "There are other people here." He walked back over and set another cup in front of Aqua. "I think your friend would be happy if you got her something."  
Terra narrowed his eyes. "I'm not going."  
Even tsked. "Don't look so suspicious. I'm just talking to her. Make yourself useful and get her something. Something mild, I say."  
Terra looked over to Aqua. "Will you be okay with that?"

Aqua smiled. "Anything would be fine. Thank you." She mused before she looked down at the other cup of medicine. She didn't even bother asking what it was for, she just took it.

"You hurt her and I'll... I'll... I'll flay you." To be quite honest, Terra didn't actually know what flaying meant, but he knew it sounded threatening, and that was enough.  
Even didn't even flinch. "I recommend you get her rice. There should be some in the icebox in the main kitchens."  
Terra ran off quickly, wanting to get back to Aqua as soon as possible.

Aqua waved to him as he left. She crossed her arms and looked at Even. "Alright why'd you want him gone." She grinned.

"You must have noticed his change in personality, as you've been his friend for a while," Even began. "It's obvious to even me. While he has returned to the general nature I'd seen when I met him, he was rather aggressive for a while, and at times, he seemed completely different."

Aqua nodded. "Yes, I did actually notice a change in him. He almost actually killed me before I even got here." She said grimly. "But it looks like my body wants to kill itself so he doesn't have to." Her tone changed, but then focused back on topic. "It has been almost three months since he's been at home, and time takes it's toll on you." She sighed.

"My suspicions point to him having some kind of gradual possession or a reaction to the darkness even worse than yours." Even looked at her with interest and slid a pad of paper out of his pocket. "Could you describe this incident of violence against you, please?"

Aqua cringed, remembering the horrific attack. "Well, I had come here to look for him, and a soldier pulled me into an alley and threw me down." She paused, feeling her heart skip a beat. "Terra walked in front of me, materializing his Keyblade, about to strike.. His eyes, were.. gold, and he was silent, but he knew deep down that he wanted to kill me." She described, folding her hands over her heart. "He was possessed. I knew he was."

"Pure gold? Or partially?" Even scribbled the information onto his pad. "When I met him, his eyes were sectioned with gold, which I had assumed was heterochromia to some extent, but around you they're mostly or fully blue."

"They looked full of gold that day, but I could be wrong." She paused laughing weakly. "I was terrified."

"The person attempting to take hold of him likely has golden eyes, meaning they're a powerful wielder of darkness." Even sighed. "Not a good sign, but your influence seems to diminish its hold."  
Terra returned to the room, holding a tray with a bowl of soup and a plate of rice on it. "I wasn't sure if you wanted just rice, so I found some soup." He explained, and set it down in front of her. "Everything okay?"

Aqua nodded. "Y-yeah! Thank you." The thought of a stronger foe possessing Terra, scared her. She began to eat her food, tense.

"What's wrong?" Terra asked, putting a gentle hand on her shoulder. Even had left for the lab already, meaning the only others in the room were the other two patient boys, still chatting away.

Aqua ate more of her food. It tasted like victory, since she hadn't eaten much of anything in the past two days. She looked up at Terra. She cleared her throat. "Yeah, I'm fine!" She looked down. "How are you dealing with everything?"

"I'm... still a little scared for you, to be honest," he admitted. "I'm glad you're gonna be well taken care of, though." Terra smiled at her. "You seem happier."

She nodded. "I'm relieved that I'll have some medicine to take, but I'm still a little scared." She admitted.

"We'll get through this, I promise." Terra smoothed her hair. The other patients' conversation picked up in volume.  
"...I was scared, okay?!" The boy with blue hair and bandages across his face shouted. "I'm not some kind of robot! I had to get you out of there, but I was really scared. I'll admit that, don't tell me it was for nothing!"

Aqua looked over to the other side of the room. "You guys alright?" She asked, taking in more food. The boys looked over.

The bluenette looked vaguely annoyed, but it was hard to tell with the bandages criss-crossing his face. The redhead, didn't actually look up for more than a second, and muttered something fearfully. The bandaged one spoke to them first. "Fresh meat, eh? What happened?"

Aqua furrowed her brow at the question. "I well, I'm considered a terminal. And I just technically moved here." She explained trying not to sound like an idiot.

"Hm." The blue haired boy fell silent seemed to think things over for a while. The redhead leaned over.  
"Well, the name's Lea," he said, flashing a dazzling smile. "And that's Isa."

Aqua waved in their direction. "Nice to meet you, I'm Aqua," She smiled and put a hand on Terra's shoulder. "And this is Terra, he's kinda like my caretaker now." She laughed trailing off. Lea grinned. "Are you guys married? You act like you are." He interjected laughing afterwards. Aqua went red. "No! We're just old friends!!" She smiled.

Terra blushed too. "Do we really act like we're married?"  
Isa shrugged. "I'd say so by the way you keep doting on her."  
"Hey! She's my oldest friend! I have to dote a little!"  
"Suuuuure." Isa smirked, stretching the bandages on his face a bit.

Aqua laughed and ate more. "Anyway, do you guys know why you're here?" She sat up straight. Lea sat in his bed, scratching an infected incision. "Well, we came into the castle for spelunking and we got caught, now we're here." He shrugged.

"He's lying," Isa said quickly. "We were attacked."  
Terra tilted his head. "By who?"  
"Who else?" Isa shrugged. "Soldiers."  
"Soldiers? Whose soldiers?" Terra recoiled.  
"No, no," Isa said. "The monster Soldiers. The ones that clank around. Haven't you heard of them? Wait, no, you said you just got here."

"Actually, I just got here." She interrupted. Her hand extended in front of Terra. "Terra had been here for almost three months." She explained. Lea glanced over. "Then shouldn't you have known about these freaks?" He asked Terra.

"I haven't been home for three months," Terra corrected. "I've only been here for about a week."  
Isa nodded. "I see. Well, we should tell you about them. They're weird monsters that clank around like they're made of metal." He shrugged again. "Not that you'll see any. The guards have some kind of barrier that keeps them out."

"So they're only outside?" Aqua asked quickly. Lea stayed silent, listening to his blue friend.

"Usually." Isa shrugged. "There are some other monsters that try to get inside, too, but they're so rarely successful. They haven't really grasped the concept of doors."  
"Are we safe in here?" Terra's eyes were wide.  
"Oh, definitely. Even would flip his shit if anything got too close to Ienzo." Isa chuckled. "He's hilariously overprotective."

Aqua squeezed Terra's arm. She gained his attention and looked at the door. "Well, at least there's that.." She said quietly. Lea picked up on their silent signals. "Do you have to go somewhere?" He asked gaining her attention. Aqua looked over quickly and shook her head. "No!" She laughed rubbing her neck.

"If it's sneaking out of here you want, we know a few tricks," Isa nodded confidently. "You'll have to wait for us to recover, of course, but there's not an inch of the outside castle grounds we haven't explored yet."

Aqua shook her head. "I don't even know if I'm allowed to leave the ward." She groaned. Lea grinned. "Then just leave! Even can just deliver your meds." He smiled deviously.

Isa smacked the redhead. "Don't be stupid. If she's leaving, she's gonna need all the strength she can get." He looked over at her. "Radiant Garden didn't used to be like this," he said sadly. "We used to play in the streets all the time, but now there are monsters everywhere. Look what they did to me, and Lea..." He looked over to his friend.  
"What?" Terra was intrigued.  
"I... I don't think you remember it, but you got really hurt trying to protect me," he said to his friend.

Aqua sank down. "I'm sorry this happened to your city guys." Her tone dropped. "You guys do know what's happening outside of here right?" She asked, squeezing Terra's arm again, this time for comfort. Lea looked up. "Isn't there a war or something going on?" Aqua looked at him. "Yes." She choked back tears. "I won't go into the horrid details, but it's bad." She swelled.

"I would assume so," Isa said bluntly. "It's none of out concern, though. We're just kids. Troublemakers. Investigative journalists."  
Terra laughed. "Journalists, huh?"  
"I, at least, want to be a journalist. I'm always finding something to get into. This guy here can vouch for that."

Aqua snapped out her daze. "Chase your dreams, theres only so much we can do." She moved over and pulled Terra down to sit next to her. Lea crossed his arms. "Jeez you guys are so gross." He scoffed.

Isa laughed. "You're telling them they're gross? I saw you pick up your ice cream after it fell on the ground and keep eating it!"

Lea grinned. "Oh please like you wouldn't have. I would have wasted good munny on something." He stuck his tongue out at his friend. "It not like I being all lovey-dovey about it."

"I think you love sea salt ice cream more than you love me, you doofus." Isa smiled at him, amused.

Lea grinned looking at Terra and Aqua. "Wanna bet?" Aqua shook her head and smiled. "No, no!" She looked away. Lea shrugged. "What about you, T-man?"

"'T-man?'" Terra echoed.  
"It doesn't matter... And now I can't even remember what we were talking about before that." Isa punch Lea affectionately. "Look what you did!"

"'T-man?'" Terra echoed.  
"It doesn't matter... And now I can't even remember what we were talking about before that." Isa punch Lea affectionately. "Look what you did!"

Isa nodded in agreement. "90% of the good doctors potions end up doing that, I suppose."  
Terra smiled at Aqua. "You feeling any better?"

She smiled. "I'm getting tired. I should probably lay down soon." She closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder. Lea groaned. "Ugh."

Isa wrinkled his nose. "Saccharine."  
Terra rolled his eyes. "Shut up."  
"Only if you stop being so mushy with each other! How am I supposed to keep my reputation as the stern one if you keep making me break character?"

Aqua laughed. "I can't help it. Lea's just being annoying." She shrugged. Lea gaped. "What!?"

"He's always annoying." Isa smirked.  
"That's not very nice," Terra remarked.  
"He has to toughen up somehow!"

Aqua sighed. "Terra, can we go to bed?" Her breath hit his neck. Lea looked puzzled. "Is that the Aqua we met twenty minutes ago?" He asked. He was right, Aqua wasn't being the polite, timid girl they had met. She was rude, and had an awkward sexual aura around her.

Terra stiffened. "Wh..? A-aren't we stayin here tonight? I-I mean..." He stammered a few more things out, turning bright red.  
Isa looked oddly at her. "Huh."

She yawned again and opened her eyes. She locked onto Terra's. "But I don't want to. I want to go back to our room." She moaned, taking his hands. Lea laughed. "Dude, there's something wrong with her." He started.

Terra couldn't really speak. "I, uh... Well I..."  
"And so the truth comes out," Isa chortled.  
Terra couldn't stop blushing. "W-why...?"

Aqua's eyes glowed with large flakes of gold in them. She pouted. "Please? I'm sure they won't mind. Besides," She leaned in next to his ear. "We can have more privacy.." She purred.   
Lea bursted out laughing. "For the love of all that is good," He was losing it.

Isa stifled a snort. "Nice."  
Terra still hadn't really managed to recover from he first remark. "I... Uh, well, uh..."

Aqua moved away from his face. "You know you want to.." She smiled, pursing her lips. Lea was still dying over on his bed, laughing his ass off.

"I... It's not that I don't, I just--"  
"Ha! I knew it!" Isa cheered, laughing.  
There was a noise from the entrance as Even returned from the lab.

Aqua ignored his entrance and stayed focused on her caretaker. "Please? Terra?" She cried. Even walked past glaring at her. He looked over at Lea, laughing.

"I, uh, i-if you want, I mean..." Terra tried to avoid her eyes.  
Even laughed. "Excuse the side effects, that happens from time to time." He turned back to Aqua. "You're not leaving. I need to be able to supervise you."

'Aqua' turned back to face Even. She pouted, and glared at him. "That's not fair. When can I leave?" Her arms crossed. Lea calmed himself down. "Oh my," He wiped a tear away. "That was perfect."

"When you've managed to return to your right mind. I see the darkness has a very... strong effect on you. I'll have to find something to balance that out." Even sighed and turned back to the counter on the wall. Isa grinned at Lea. "Let's leave the lovebirds alone for now."

Lea nodded, painfully, keeping a giggle inside. Aqua pulled her legs up and squished back against the head of the bed. "It's not fair!" She groaned. Now she was just acting like a child.

"Please. You're a grown woman, don't be so childish," Even said as he searched through the cabinets. Terra had managed to break out of his stupor and drew the curtain between them and Isa and Lea.

"Oh please," She scoffed. "Like you're any better, Even." Aqua buried her head in her knees. "I want to sleep." She complained.

"Sleep, then." Even shrugged, irritated. "You'll recover from your altered state of mind faster. Not to mention, you won't be bothering me."

"Fine." She hissed and turned from him. She kicked her shoes off and faced Terra. "I'm gonna sleep now. Are you gonna be okay?"

Aqua smiled. "You never let me down. I'm so happy." She eventually dozed off. Even sighed. "Finally."

"Duh... Does that happen to everyone?" Terra stammered.  
"Not everyone, but it's a very common reaction," Even explained. "She was unused to darkness, so obviously introducing even a tiny bit cause a strong change."

Even walked over to sleeping Aqua holding a syringe. "I've had to deal with a few before, but at least her knight was here for her." He teased brutally, injecting her with the serum in the syringe. Aqua tensed.

Terra grabbed her hand gently to distract her. "Her knight? What do you mean by that?"

Even looked at him. "You're joking right?" Terra held a confused face. "Oh for Light's sake. You're always at the girl's feet, you're never not by her side! You always answer her beg or call, no matter what." He explained.

"Well, why shouldn't I be?" Terra looked at Aqua's sleeping face. "We're best friends. I know she'd do the same for me."

"Maybe, you have to think about how much your affection towards her goes unnoticed." He said walking away to his desk.

"Unnoticed? How could she not notice?" Terra called after him. He lowered his tone. "I... So what if I'm not noticed, I just want to make you happy."

Even tuned him out and continued to administer his patients with medicine and questions. Hours passed, and eventually the ward was silent except for the sounds of patients' sleeping. Aqua woke up to find Terra resting his head on her bed, sleeping. She smiled, and rested her head next to his.

Terra suddenly awoke, looking around, but calmed himself when he saw Aqua beside him. "You feeling better?" He smiled gently.

Aqua opened her eyes, they were the normal blue that they were before. "I feel a lot better, but what happened?" She asked brushing his hair out of his face.

"You, uh... Well, you had a weird reaction to the medicine Even gave you." He yawned. "But it seems like you're fine now."

She nodded. "What time is it?" She observed how he looked incredibly exhausted, he even looked a little sad. "Is everything okay? You look upset?"

"No! Of course not. I'm just a little... Sleepy...." He yawned once more and slumped over on her shoulder, fast asleep.

Aqua smiled, and rested her head on his. She pulled her blanket over top of them and soon fell asleep. Even eventually woke her up. "Get up, I have to draw blood." He said almost yelling. Aqua jumped awake, waking Terra up as well. "Okay, okay, let me wake up first." She groaned, still half asleep.

Terra blinked groggily. "Huh...? When time is it?"  
"Almost three," Even snapped. "Get off her arm, I need it."

Aqua rubbed her eyes before Even pulled her right arm away. "Why do you have to do this anyway?" She yawned.

"To make sure you don't die," he replied bluntly. "I need to see if there's any overt reactions to the medicines I'll be using on you."

She nodded. "Alright. Jeez." Her sight fell to Terra. "Did you get some sleep?" Her voice cracked.

Terra nodded. "Yeah. It was actually pretty decent too, no nightmares or anything."

Aqua nodded. "Maybe if I'm good I can find some other clothes to wear." She squeaked when the needle pierced her skin. Her azure head flashed to Even. "You could have told me!"

"You would have been more anxious." He replied simply. "And I'm not sure we'll be able to find you any clothes; there were never a lot of women in the castle."

Aqua grit her teeth. "Well then we'll go out." She explained through her teeth. "There shouldn't be any harm done when I'm with Terra, right?"

"You aren't leaving in this condition! And I want to keep an eye on you, too." Even shot a pointed glance at Terra. "I'll have Dilan make himself useful and fetch something for both of you."

She groaned. "How long am I going to be bed ridden? Can I at least walk around the castle or do something!?" Aqua cried, clearly stir-crazy already.

"You can walk around the castle, I suppose. But don't go too far. And keep Terra with you."  
Terra nodded. "I'd rather not be alone anyway."

Aqua smiled and wrapped her free arm around Terra. "Of course! He's always there!" She squished her cheek to his.

Terra smiled and fluffed up her hair. "Best friends forever!" he cheered, though something deep within him whispered of wanting more.

Aqua snuggled next to him until Even tore the needle out. Aqua shot up. "Ow!" She shouted. "Why did you rip it out?! You could've done it softer." Blood ran down her arm. Even shrugged and wrapped the bleeding incision in gauze. "I was infuriated." he scoffed and walked back to his work table.

Terra scowled. "Moody little bitch," he whispered to Aqua. "Wonder how he got this bitter, don't you?"

Aqua glared in his direction. "He was probably dumped." She spat. She held her bleeding arm.

"Dumped?" Oh god he heard us, Terra thought. "You really think I'm bitter over someone else?" Even laughed, bitter and high-pitched. "I've far more to worry about in life than something as inconsequential as love."

She crossed her arms. "Well you never know! You never exert anything but anger!" Aqua paused. "Besides, love is more important than your silly sciences. It brings people together and helps those in distress find their way!" She stood up, now in his face. "If you think love is inconsequential, then get a reality check, bud." She shouted, storming out of the room.

Terra followed her, noting the distressed look on Even's face as they left. He put his arm over her shoulders. He didn't really know what to say. What could he say?

Aqua looked out the window. "I'm sorry about that, I just couldn't." She didn't know what to say. Aqua faced Terra. "I mean, how dare he, calling love inconsequential," She shook her head. Her gaze fell to his eyes. "Your eyes," She smiled.

"My eyes?" Terra asked, pointing to his face. "What's wrong with my eyes? That is, if there's something wrong with them..." Nope, that is not how you words.

Aqua shook her head, grinning. "No! Nothing's wrong, they're just gorgeous." She blushed. "Such a deep blue,"

Terra smiled. "You had me worried there. I thought something crazy happened to them!" He paused. "Your eyes are beautiful, too."

She giggled. "Thank you." Aqua stood on the tips of her toes. She kissed his cheek. "Thank you."

Terra blushed to the tips of his ears. "I-it's true!" He tried to hide behind his hand

She sank back down. Confused and worried. "What!? Did I do something?" Her face went red.

"I, uh, well... I'm just..." Terra stammered.

Aqua couldn't stop smiling. "Yes, Terra?" She moved up closer to him.

"I... I really like you, Aqua, and... What you said about love back there...."

She met his eyes again. "What?" She smiled.

"Well, I... Aqua, I don't know how to say this, really..." Could it be this easy? He took her hands. "I... I love you, I think. I think I'm in love with you."

She jumped up and kissed him, she kissed his cheeks, mouth, everything really. Her hands held his cheeks. "Yes, yes, yes!" She said in between rushed kisses.

Terra was astonished. Was it really this easy. He hugged her. "I... Was that okay?"

She hugged him. "I was always so afraid of how you would react so I never said anything!" She squeaked.

"You? Afraid?" Terra laughed, setting his hands on her shoulders. "I guess love makes people do crazy things."

She sank back down. "I guess you're right.." Aqua laughed. "But that doesn't stop the fact I'm going to die." She frowned.

"You aren't going to die!" Terra held her tight. "Not on my watch."

Aqua was frightened by his tight grip. "Terra, you know it's going to happen. There's no way to avoid it!" She tried to explain, but he already knew. "I can't put it any other way."

"I... I can't let you just give up like this!" Terra cried. "You mean too much to me to let this go." He stared into her eyes, hoping to drill the message into her soul. "Please, Aqua. You can't give up."

"Terra, please calm down. I'm not trying to give up, There's just no hope," Her gaze fell. "I never wanted to give up, I want to go see Ven and Master, it's just." She stopped.

"Just what?" Terra tilted her chin up towards him.

"I can't! I'm a child of light that's trapped in a castle in the middle of the dark kingdom! I'm dying, Terra!" She cried. "I'm dying and I can't can't get out of here." Her expression darkened. "We can't pretend anymore. There's no way to avoid my demise, Terra." Her emotion was insecure.

Terra didn't know what to say to that. It was true. It was terrifying. His heart pounded so loudly he swore she could hear it. "I... Aqua..." Tears filled his eyes. "No," he whispered, and brought his lips to hers.

Aqua cried. She felt warm tears run down her cold cheeks. Terra had been there for it all. Her emotions were in whack from her terminal. It just depended how much more time she would be able to spend with him. Her heart hurt, burned, bled and cried.

All Terra had to do was focus on her light. That's all he'd ever needed. Watch Aqua. Follow Aqua. Listen to Aqua.  
Aqua.  
No, she couldn't die. She wasn't allowed to die, god damn it! He'd save her no matter what. The world needed her. He needed her. God damn it all, he needed her. Terra held in his sobs. He needed to be strong, right? The perfect knight? Fuck it, he thought, and let himself go.


End file.
